Typographical casting machine



ra :2 a t ii p e we e DAVID S. KENNEDY, OF BROOKLYN, YORK, ASSIGNOB TOlv'fERGENTHALER LINO- TYPE COMPANY, A COEORATION 01% NEW YORK.

TYPOGRAPHICAL CASTING I/IACHIN'E.

Application filed. February 16, 1922. Serial No. 536,884.

To (JZZ whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, DAvn) ti Knivnnnr, a citizen of the United States,residing at Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Typographical CastingMachines, of which the following is a specification, reference being hadtherein to the accompanying drawing. 7

This invention relates to typographical casting machines, such aslinotype machines of the general organization represented in U. S.Letters Patent to O. Mergenthaler No. 436,532, wherein a melting pot isarranged to deliver molten metal into a slotted mold and up against acomposed line of matrices to produce a type bar or slug bearing on itsedge type characters corresponding to the intaglio characters of thematrices. In these machines, it is important to provide for the escapeof air from the mold, as otherwise the slugs (and particularly theirtype characters) will be cast in a ragged or porous condition. For thisreason, it has been the practise for many years past to provide themouthpiece of the melting pot with shallow grooves or passages to allowthe air to escape during the casting operation. Such an arrangement isfairly satisfactory for the casting of the smaller slugs,.but it isaltogether inadequate for the casting of the larger slugs, such forinstance as those formed with headletter or display characters. Thedifiiculty is that the air, in order to escape, must travel back over orthrough the molten metal as it is injected into the mold, with theresult that a considerable portion is inevitably trapped in the mold,thereby producing air pockets or pores which mar the printing face ofthe type characters. The old arrangementis also open to otherobjections, one of which, for example, is the leakage or squirting ofthe molten metal through the air passages due to the failure of themetal to chill quickly enough to seal these passages.

The present invention is intended to obviate the above and otherobjections and contemplates a construction whereby the air may. becompletely expelled. from the mold during the casting operation so thatthe slugs may be cast in as perfect condition as possible- To this end,it is proposed to form the air vents directly in the mold, andpreferably in its front or matrix engaging face, so that the moltenmetal which is injected into the mold from the rear, may drive thecontained air before it and expel it through the vents at the front. Inthis way, the molten metal, instead of hindering the escape of the air,acts positively to expel it from the mold. The molten metal will ofcourse flow into the air passages, but any leakage or squirting of themetal .is prevented by its sudden chilling or solidification in the airpassages due tothe cold condition of the metallic surfaces. The finscast in the air passages will be carried away on the slug when thelatter is ejected from the mold and then removed by the customarytrimming knives. The exact form and arrangement of the parts Wlll befully pointed out in the detailed description to follow:

Although equally applicable to a plainor unrecessed mold, the inventionhas been herein illustrated asapplied to a mold of the recessed orheadletter variety, which is the form commonly employed for the castingof the larger slugs. As shown, the mold comprises the body portion A,the cap portion A and the intermediate liners A and A these parts beingheld together in assembled relation by the studs A projecting up fromthe body portion A and engaging in notches formed in the opposite endsof the cap portion. The cap portion A is formed in its front face withthe longitudinal groove A and in its under face with the series oftransverse grooves A, leaving the blocks or core sections A projectinginto the mold cavity proper. As thus constructed, the mold will cast aslug like that shown in Fig. 4, which comprises the relatively thin bodyportion B, the overhanging face-portion or self B upon which the typecharacters are formed, and the series of transverse ribs B projectingfrom the body portion and giving support to the overhanging shelf. Inthls connection, it is pointed out that the grooves A are somewhatdeeper than the longitudinal groove A (Fig. 2), so that theribs B viewof the mold (Fig. 4:) are slightly raised with respect tothe'overhanging shelf B and extend across the same to its outer face.These raised ribs are later dressed down by the trimming knife in thecustomary way.

In accordance with the present invention, the mold is provided with aseries of air vents or passages in the form of relatively wide andshallow channels a cut through the front face of the cap portion A anddisposed in vertical alignment with the transverse grooves 1%.. Duringcasting, the mold is closed at the rear by the mouthpiece of a meltingpot and at the front by a composed line of matrices, in the mannerindicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 2. Owing to the presence of theair vents a, however, the mold is left open to the atmosphere at thefront, so that when the molten metal is in jected into it from the rear,the contained air will be completely expelled therefrom through thevents and thus allow the molten metal entirely to fill up. the mold andthe matrix cavities. As the mold is thus constructed, it has been foundin practice that the slugs may be cast in practically perfect conditionand with type characters sharply and clearly defined and free fromobjectionable pores or other imperfections.

During casting, the molten metal necessarily flows into the air vents a,but it almost instantaneously chills and solidifies therein, so that noleakage or squirting; can take place. Such instantaneous chilling of themolten metal is due primarily to the location of the vents at the front,where the steel surfaces of the mold keep cold, but the action isconsiderably aided by reason of their comparatively small dimensions.However, it is equally important that the vents be such that the fins Z)(Fig. l). cast therein may be carried away with the slug; as the latteris ejected from the mold. It is for this reason that the vents are maderelatively wide and narrow, as before mentioned, as thereby the fins arecast with sufficient strength to be drawn out without becoming broken.

The location of the air vents is also im portant, since the this I) mustbe completely removed from the slug after casting. In the presentinstance, and as before noted, the vents are aligned with and lead fromthe transverse grooves A, so that the fins are actually cast on theraised portions of the ribs B see Fig. 4. Consequently, during thetrimming of the slug, the knife does not act directly upon the fins,which in such circumstances would simply bend over or break, but cutsinto the ribs slightly below the points of juncture of the finstherewith,

thus allowing the fins to be carried off as a part of the shavings fromthe ribs.

In the accompanying drawing, the invention has been shown merely inpreferred form and by way of example and as applied to a specific kindof machi e, but obviously many changes and alterations may be madetherein and in its mode of application without departing from itsspirit. Thus, the invention is applicable to any form of typo graphicalcasting machine, whether the product of such machine be a slug or asingle type or logotype, although, as has been seen, it is particularlyapplicable to a slug casting machine. Again, the air vents, instead ofbeing formed in the cap portion of the mold, might be out in the bodyportion of the mold, or any other suitable portion, so long as they arecapable of functioning in the manner set forth. In this connection, itmay be stated that, in many instances, the grooves A. and A are out in aspecial liner which is made separate from the cap portion; and in suchcase, the air vents might be formed in the liner rather than in the capportion. These and various othermodifications will readily suggestthemselves to those skilled in the art and still be comprised within thescope of the invention. It should be understood, therefore, that theinvention is not limited to any specific form or embodiment except in sofar as such limitations are specified in the claims.

Having thus described my invention what 1 claim is:

1. In or for a typographical casting ma chine, a mold open at one sidefor the injection of molten metal and formed at the opposite side withan air vent.

2. In or fora typographical casting machine, a mold formed in its matrixengaging face with an air vent leading from the mold cavity.

In or for a slug casting machine, a longitudinally slotted mold formedin its matrix engaging face with a series of air vents leading from themold slot.

4. In or for a slug casting machine, a longitudinally slotted moldcomprising side and end walls, one of the side walls being formed in itsmatrix engaging face with a series of air vents leading from the-moldslot.

5. A linotype mold cap formed in its front face with a series of airvents extending therethrough.

6. In, or for a slug casting machine, a longitudinally slotted moldcomprising side and end walls, one of the side walls being formed in itscasting face with a series of transverse grooves and in its matrixengaging face with a series of air vents aligned with and leading fromsaid transverse grooves.

7. A linotype mold cap formed in its under face with a series oftransverse grooves and in its front face with a series of air ventsaligned with and leading from said grooves.

8. In or for a slug casting machine, a longitudinally slotted moldcomprising side and end walls, one of the side Walls being formed in itsmatrix engaging face With a longitudinal groove opening into the moldslot and. in its casting face With a series of transverse grooves ofslightly greater depth than that of the longitudinal groove, said sidewell being further formed in its matrix engaging face with a series ofair vents aligned with and leading from the transverse grooves.

9. A linotype mold cap formed in its front face with a longitudinalgroove and in its under face with a series of transverse grooves, thesaid cap being further formed in its front face with a series of airvents aligned withand leading from the transverse grooves.

10. A mold constructed according to any one of the foregoing claimscharacterized by the fact that the air vents therein referred to are inthe form of relatively Wide and shallow channels, for the purposedescribed. In testimony whereof, I have affixed my signature hereto.

DAVID S. KENNEDY.

